Stephanie Farr

Staff Writer

Stephanie Farr covers Philly Culture for the Philadelpha Inquirer, Daily News and Philly.com. She writes about the people, places, things, and ideas that make Philly and its suburbs weird, wild, and wonderfully unique.

A Lower Merion cop suffering from mental health issues committed suicide in his car in FDR Park this morning, according to police and Lower Merion officials.

When Lower Merion Township Ofc. Sean Quinn, 46, did not show up for work as scheduled at 7 a.m. today, Superintendent Michael McGrath issued an alert to all area law enforcement agencies "out of an abundance of caution," according to a news release.

Ofc. Sean Quinn

The release did not detail why Quinn's supervisors felt it necessary to notify other police departments that the officer was missing, but a city police spokeswoman said Quinn was believed to suffer from mental health issues.

Lower Merion Township public information officer Thomas Walsh declined to go in to detail regarding Quinn's mental state. He did, however, say the officer was not fired but just failed to show up for work.

Walsh said Quinn left his house after a fight with his wife Sunday night and did not return.

Quinn was last seen around 5:30 a.m. in Ardmore and last had contact with his family around 6:30 a.m. while he was in the Columbus Boulevard area, according to Lower Merion officials.

After Quinn's personal vehicle, a 2012 gray Ford Focus, was found at FDR park this morning, city police set up a perimeter around the park at Broad Street and Pattison Avenue in South Philadelphia, according to police.

Quinn was found inside the vehicle with a self-inflicted gunshot wound to the head, according to a news release from Lower Merion Township.

Lower Merion police called Quinn, who also worked as a D.A.R.E officer, "a respected veteran of the force." Walsh said he was the father of three adult children.

"He was just a very well liked and a well-respected officer here," Walsh said. "His fellow officers are trying to absorb this."

According to his LinkedIn profile, Quinn had 25 years experience in law enforcement and was nearing retirement. He was working on building an Internet shopping business, according to his profile.

In a statement, Lower Merion police Superintendent Michael McGrath said: "The Lower Merion Police Department wishes to express its heartfelt condolences to Officer Quinn's family and friends and asks that they be kept in your thoughts and prayers as we all try to come to terms with this tragic event."